A food writer's 250 favorite ingredients, with recipes for how to use them.

May 29, 2012

Recipe for melon with lime, peanut and mint topping

Cantaloupe, casaba, crenshaw, canary: I adore melon, and not just the orange-fleshed ones. Squirt some fresh lime on chunks of ripe, juicy melon, and I'm in breakfast or dessert heaven. Still, I'm in a shake-it-up mood these days when it comes to old favorites in the kitchen (remember the maple cinnamon matzoh brei). So, inspired by mint coming up in my garden, I decided to try slices of melon with a lime, peanut and mint topping. You'll see fish sauce in the list of ingredients; before you turn up your nose, let me assure you the topping is not fishy. It's just pleasantly, vaguely Thai, and the balance of the tart sauce with the sweet melon will make you wish every Thai restaurant in your neighborhood had this dish on its menu.

Directions

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, add the peanuts and mint leaves, and pulse 10 times to chop roughly. Then, add the fish sauce, lime juice, brown sugar and rice vinegar. Process for 5-10 seconds, until the peanuts are more finely chopped but are not yet beginning to turn to peanut butter. There will be very little liquid in the mixture; this is a topping, not a dressing.

Arrange slices of melon on individual serving plates, and spoon on the peanut topping. Garnish with lime zest and additional mint leaves.

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Welcome to The Perfect Pantry®

My name is Lydia Walshin. From my tiny kitchen in Boston's South End, I share recipes that use what we keep in our pantries, the usual and not-so-usual ingredients that spice up our lives. Thanks so much for visiting.